


Nothing Sweeter

by shootngstxr



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: F/F, Fluff, watching sunsets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:07:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24461785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shootngstxr/pseuds/shootngstxr
Summary: Marceline turned to her, surprised. “Wait, really?”“Really. You’re right, I’ve been letting all this get to me.” She gestured to her cluttered lab. “And that’s just what the Lich wants. Besides, the Candy Kingdom’ll still be here when we get back, right?”“Well…”“Marcy!”The vampire chuckled. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” she reassured the princess. “We’ll be gone for, like, three hours max.”Bonnibel’s face scrunched up in uncertainty. “Wait, I’m not so sure any-”“Too late, we’re going. Hang on tight!” Marceline took her hand and led to her the balcony just outside the window, grinning wildly. Before Bonnibel could protest, she stepped onto the balcony railing and jumped into the night air, pulling her close. Princess Bubblegum gave a small “oh!” of surprise, clinging tightly to Marceline. It was night now, she realised, dark and cold. The stars seemed to twinkle alluringly, calling to them.And then Marceline flew.My full piece for the bubbline zine. Enjoy!
Relationships: Princess Bubblegum/Marceline
Comments: 5
Kudos: 75





	Nothing Sweeter

“Oh, Bonnie~” 

Princess Bubblegum groaned as a curtain of hair appeared in front of her, blocking her view of the laboratory table in front of her. She looked up to find Marceline floating over her in a curled position, turned so that she was facing the princess at an upside-down angle. She smirked. “Watcha doin’?” 

“Working,” the princess replied. She raised an eyebrow pointedly. “I have a  _ lot _ to do.” When Marceline didn’t move she added, “I’d like to get to it,” sneaking around her girlfriend.

But the vampire was not to be deterred. “I’m sure you do,” she sighed, stretching exaggeratedly to block Bonnibel’s line of sight. 

Bubblegum craned her neck around the vampire with a huff. “Marceline, I don’t have time for this!” Marceline rolled her eyes. She manoeuvred herself into a more comfortable position. 

  
“Why, what horrible threat do you have to save the candy people from this time?” 

Bonnibel blushed, a magenta shade tingeing her pink cheeks. “It’s not- I mean-” She sighed, taking off her glasses to pinch the bridge of her nose. “Look, there’s just some… improvements I need to make to the candy wall defense system, that’s all. It won’t take long.”

Marceline scoffed. She floated behind the worktable, propping her arms up on it. “What, that’s it? Some stupid wall repairs? Nothing wrong with the way it is now.” 

“Yes, there  _ is _ .” Bubblegum frowned, swatting away her girlfriend’s arms. “They break way too easily! Last time…” She bit her lip, cheeks flushing. “Maybe if I can rework the structure in some way, or change the consistency somehow... There isn’t any other defense except the gumball guardians, and the candy people can’t protect themselves, and- and-” Bonnibel’s voice broke. 

“Whoa, whoa!” Marceline held up two hands, feet touching the ground lightly beside the princess. “Slow down, alright? No need to get so worked up about it. I was just kidding around.”

Bonnibel nodded. She reached for Marceline and enveloped her in a hug, burrowing her face in her shoulder. “Yeah, okay. It’s just, I’ve been so worried about them lately, especially after the whole thing with the Lich…” Her voice trailed off. “I need to be able to protect the candy people. I need to know I can keep them safe.” 

Understanding dawned on Marceline. Of course, the  _ Lich _ . Just a few weeks ago, he’d tricked Finn to take her crown gem and open the Enchiridion’s portal. Despite all of the Princess Bubblegum’s efforts and precautions to stop him, she had barely been able to do anything against him, and could only watch as he took the jewels and opened a portal to Prismo’s wish room. 

“Oh, Bonnie…” She bit her lip. Marceline pushed her away gently, placing two hands on her girlfriend’s shoulders. “Let’s go, then.” Marceline cupped the princess’ cheek, eyes softening. “Away. Just for a little while.” 

“What?” Bonnibel pulled back suddenly, her eyes searched the vampire. 

Marceline sighed at the princess’ obvious reluctance. “Look, it doesn’t have to be for long, just for now.” She studied her carefully. “You look like you need it.”   
  


Bubblegum deadpanned. Suddenly her frizzled hair and deep eye bags were much more obvious to her. “Gee, thanks.”

  
“You know I didn’t mean it that way. Look, I found a place near here you’d like. Secluded, great view, real romantic-like, all on top of a mountain. It could be our secret place,” Marceline suggested, a light blush dusting her grey cheeks. 

Bonnibel sighed, looking around at her research. It’d been at least 13 hours since she’d started her latest test trials, 2 hours longer since she’d seen sunlight. Maybe it  _ was _ starting to get to her. She ran a hand through her hair, taking her glasses off and pinching the bridge of her nose. “Yeah, okay.”

Marceline turned to her, surprised. “Wait, really?”

“Really. You’re right, I’ve been letting all this get to me.” She gestured to her cluttered lab. “And that’s just what the Lich wants. Besides, the Candy Kingdom’ll still be here when we get back, right?”   
“Well…” 

“Marcy!” 

The vampire chuckled. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” she reassured the princess. “We’ll be gone for, like, three hours max.”

Bonnibel’s face scrunched up in uncertainty. “Wait, I’m not so sure any-”    
“Too late, we’re going. Hang on tight!” Marceline took her hand and led to her the balcony just outside the window, grinning wildly. Before Bonnibel could protest, she stepped onto the balcony railing and jumped into the night air, pulling her close. Princess Bubblegum gave a small “oh!” of surprise, clinging tightly to Marceline. It was night now, she realised, dark and cold. The stars seemed to twinkle alluringly, calling to them.

And then Marceline flew.

No matter how many times Bonnibel accompanied Marceline’s spontaneous flights, it never ceased to surprise her how quickly the vampire queen could change speeds. She glimpsed downwards, unable to sate her curiosity, and saw the Candy Kingdom beneath them disappearing from view. Bubblegum yelped, burying her face in her girlfriend’s baggy sweatshirt as the wind whipped wildly at her hair. She opened an eye to peek at Marceline, who shot her a wicked grin and sped impossibly faster. 

_ Jerk _ . 

In any case, Marceline hadn’t been kidding about the place being secluded, either. They were flying far past the outskirts of the kingdom now, over Finn and Jake’s place and into the grasslands beyond. Bonnibel thought she saw lights coming from the treehouse as they passed, flickering brightly against the otherwise pitch-black darkness of the field. 

Soon enough they were there, and the pair touched down on an isolated patch of grass. There was clear silence around them, the soft buzzing of crickets and fireflies the only distant sound. Bonnibel tried to take a step and stumbled forward, only just caught by Marceline in front of her. 

“Whoa, you alright?” the vampire asked, chuckling. 

She nodded. “Mm-hm, I’m fine. It’s just a little hard to get used to the ground again, you know?”   
“Yeah, we’ve been flying for a while.” Marceline paused, a glint of mischief in her eye. “Guess you’re a little… weak in the knees for me, huh?” she winked.

The princess groaned, rolling her eyes. Leave it to Marceline to ruin a heartfelt moment with a shamelessly bad pun. “Oh, stop.” She brushed past her, dusting off her buttoned coat as she did so. “So this is the place, huh?”

Marceline shrugged, floating past her. “Well, yeah.” 

“Huh.” If Bonnibel was being honest, she didn’t really see too much to the place. It was… nice, she guessed? An isolated hilltop facing the ocean, a gentle ocean and mountain range in the distance. 

“Hm,” she heard her girlfriend hum quietly from behind her, lounging comfortably in the air. “Oh, hey, wait. What time is it?”

Princess Bubblegum raised an eyebrow, tapping at her watch. She squinted at its soft, glowing pink screen. Dark out tonight. “Quarter past six, why?”

“C’mere, let me show you something.” Suddenly the vampire queen was up and moving again, tugging at the princess’ arm. Their hands interlocked. “We should be right on time for it.” Bonnibel went along with her, shrugging. “Marcy, look, I get that the sky’s pretty and all, but-”

“Sh, shh, just watch!” 

Her nose scrunched up. “Did you just shush m-”

“Look!” Marceline pointed to the sky, laughing. 

Bonnibel’s jaw dropped as she finally turned her head to the sky. “Oh,  _ wow _ .”

Sunsets in Ooo, if she was being honest, were a funny thing. In the Candy Kingdom, they were often dull, fleeting things, barely seen with the usual light and bustle of the rest of the kingdom. Faded in the distance, a simple orange and yellow light far away. But here, in the isolation of the hills with no one else around? It practically  _ glowed _ , a spectacular myriad of colors flashing bright in the sky above them. It was gorgeous, and spectacular, and Bubblegum wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen anything prettier in her life.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marceline smirk, chuckling quietly. “Yeah, I thought your nerdy butt would like that.”

“Shut up!” She blushed lightly. Well, there was  _ one _ thing prettier. She leaned in to kiss Marceline gently on the cheek, resting her head on her shoulder. 

And in the quiet of the night, there was no one else to hear her whisper as the stars above them disappeared one by one. “ _ I love it _ .” 


End file.
